Episode 46: Belfort, Board Game Themes and Meet the GM: Brian

In episode 45 we go on and on about the worker placement and area majority game Belfort. As always, Tony gives you the low down on all the new stuff happening in the world of gaming while the rest of us heckle him. Then we have a discussion about board game themes - what makes a good one, what makes a bad one and some of our favorite thematic games. Then we introduce a brand new style of discussion - Meet the GM: Brian in which we talk to Brian about his specific brand of Game Mastering.

Walkthrough and Review

Belfort
Belfort is a worker placement game with area majority scoring in each district as well as for each type of worker. Buildings give you influence in the districts as well as income, but taxes increase based on your score so the winning players will have to pay more than those behind! Manage your resources and gold well, choose your buildings wisely, and help build the city of Belfort!

Look Back

Star Trek: Fleet Captains
Designed for two or four players, is set in the "Prime Universe" of STAR TREK (as seen in the various TV series and movies up to Star Trek: Nemesis) and is more adversarial in nature when compared to Star Trek: Expeditions. Each player begins play with a fleet of ships and starts at opposite ends of an unexplored sector of space. This sector of space is represented by hexegonal cards (which are shuffled before play and placed face-down in a pre-determined pattern). As each ship progresses through the sector, you turn the tiles face up, revealing what is in that part of the sector (a Class-M planet, a Class-J Nebula, empty space, etc...). Hopefully you will discover and acquire resources while simultaneously denying them to your opponent(s). When conflict inevitably breaks out, you and your opponent(s) will battle it out for sector supremacy. Last fleet standing wins the sector for their respective faction. Each ship will be on a base with a dial and accompanied by a "Ship Card". The Card denotes three different statuses for each ship; normal operating, Yellow Alert, and Red Alert. Each status affects how your dial plays as well as how the game and your opponents interact with you.

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About The Secret Cabal Gaming Podcast

Five old friends with a love of gaming come together to produce a bi-weekly podcast about gaming of all kinds: board games, card games, miniatures wargames, role-playing games and much more. In each episode you can expect board game reviews, gaming industry news and roundtable discussions. The founders, Jamie, Tony, Brian, Steve and Chris, each have different tastes in gaming so expect a wide variety of viewpoints. Read More about the Secret Cabal Gaming Podcast now...

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